As Microsoft codename watchers know, one of the codenames the Softies have tried their best to keep under wraps is "Midori." But last month, one Microsoft researcher slipped an interesting Midori reference into a presentation that makes it seem that Midori is still alive and well.

As I often note when writing about Microsoft Research projects and incubations, there is no guarantee that any of the technologies discussed and demonstrated here are going to become commercial Microsoft products or parts of products. However, I disagree with some Softies and Microsoft watchers who say that delving into these kinds of Microsoft technologies is nothing but an exercise in Kremlinology. Increasingly, many of these kinds of projects inside the Soft end up influencing heavily technologies that will ship from the company in the next five- to ten years.

Mary Jo Foley has covered the tech industry for 30 years for a variety of publications, including ZDNet, eWeek and Baseline. She is the author of Microsoft 2.0: How Microsoft plans to stay relevant in the post-Gates era (John Wiley & Sons, 2008). She also is the cohost of the "Windows Weekly" podcast on the TWiT network.
Got a tip? Se...
Full Bio

Disclosure

Freelance journalist/blogger Mary Jo Foley has nothing to disclose. WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get). I do not own Microsoft stock or stock in any of its partners or competitors. I have no business ventures that are sponsored by Microsoft or any of its partners or competitors.